Women's Hoops Blog

Sunday, April 04, 2004

In women's college basketball (if not yet the pros), everything seems to be headed in the right direction. We have a confluence of favorable trends pushing the game to new heights.

This year we saw the best senior class ever. We saw more upsets, more good teams, and more parity.

All of that led us to a perfect Final Four. We have two famous dynastic programs joined by two exciting newcomers. We have Taurasi, whose name often appears next to the phrase "best ever." We have LSU generating tons of local interest in New Orleans. We have Minnesota as a highlight-reel Cindarella. We have Candace Parker on the way.

Fan interest is at an all-time high. TV ratings are way up. Tickets for the games are going for hundreds of dollars.

Media coverage is improving. ESPN has done an excellent job with the event, both in terms of coverage and promotion. Papers in Minnesota and New Orleans are now filled with article after article on women's basketball, just like papers in Connecticut and Tennessee.

Araton's point is worth keeping in mind. Much as the attention and accolades attention are nice, we need to remember that it's not all about hype, ratings, and dollars. Success will bring us those trappings, but we can't let the trappings take over.

We need to keep the real treasures in mind. Fairness and equality. Strong female role models for boys and girls. Sportsmanship and comraderie among fans, built both around specific team loyalty and a more generalized love for the game. And above all, good basketball.

Enjoy the games, folks... this is a wonderful time to be a women's basketball fan.